Yesterday’s flag flip on the Brooklyn Bridge was not an act of terror. It was a silly prank, most likely pulled by skateboarding teenagers (if you go by the latest NYPD notion). The only thing terrorizing about that would be if the skateboarders were older than 19. No one over the age of 19 whose name is not Tony Hawk should be riding a skateboard.
In the pre-9/11 era in Brooklyn, teens fortified with hubris, pot and a 40 would regularly climb the bridge’s towers. It was considered a rite of passage. So the idea that scaling these towers was somehow a new event is just wrong. And as for flag theft, it’s happened at least twice before. And we’re all still here. So nuts to the claim that this has somehow made the bridge more vulnerable to attack.
While we’re at it, saying the flags “could have been bombs” is to use the vernacular whack. Because even if they were bombs they’d have to be pretty big to do damage and the NYPD patrols on either side of the bridge would surely spot that sort of thing.
And while Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams “isn’t laughing” about the incident, but some people might see a little whimsy in the prank. The only thing that will be maddening is if it’s a marketing stunt for some TV show or worse yet a wacky website (remember GoldenPalace.com?).
In a year we’ll all look back and laugh at this — that is if we even remember it. After all, isn’t there Justin Bieber and Kimye news to keep us occupied?
